The plan moving forward...a proposal

So since people are always debating potential moves, and direction for the team, I thought I'd put in the time to write a comprehensive plan (as opposed to one-off comments in various threads). I will put the caveat that a lot of what I am proposing will need financial approval. I am trying to make a plan of direction, funding would dictate how much actually gets achieved.

Franchise Direction1. Expand the scouting staff. The NBA regulates how much money you spend on players, but not how much you spend on scouting. The Raps should have as many talented scouts as they can get. They need to be deployed all over the world to watch and evaluate as many players as possible. Draft picks, and free agents from over-seas are the cheapest method's of acquiring talented players. You need to make the most of every opportunity. How good would the Spurs have been if they didn't draft Parker late in the first or Manu in the 2nd round? Gems can be found, but you need to look hard.

2. Build on the team culture by only acquiring players that fit at least one of the following three traits:
hard workers who play well defensively- regardless of position;
supreme athletes;
vets on short deals.

We want players that fit the new team culture of D-Fence. If we can become an elite defensive team, we can compete every night and would appear to be "one piece away", a positive light that we haven't been able to say since T-Mac & Vince.

Gusy who are super athletic can be taught specific roles/skills that will help the team. Also, the better the athlete, the better chance they have to become a very good defender. Surround those guys with Defensive guys, and the hardwork and defensively mentality should rub off. There is no surprise that San Antonio gets better defensively play out of bad defenders that other teams, because of the culture created with Pop, Duncan, Parker and Manu. A strong culture with leaders will reign in players (with the caveat that some players are just dumb - Blatche, McGee, etc).

Veterans are often the easiest way to get talent on the cheap. Young gems are hard to find (boom/bust), but a solid veteran prescence is much easier to predict. But the deals have to be short (3 yr max) and not expensive (no JO, Turk type deals). European league players are a great way to get experienced/professional players but with the hunger and drive of someone who hasn't had as much success. Alan Anderson has proven to be a great move, we need to scour the globe for other players. Rudy Fernandez from Madrid? Would he come back to the NBA? Maybe, maybe not, but this is the type of thign that needs to be explored.

Guys that fit these traits would be Lou Amundson (#1) - signed by Minnesota mid-season on min., Ryan Gomes (#2) - free agent still, Brian Cardinal (#1 & #3) - free agent still. The move I loved by another team this past year was Portland and JJ Hickson. Hardworker and a great athlete on a cheap one year deal. That is the type of player we need to target.

3. Continue to look at various technology advancements. Using the technology to track metric stats, and trends is something that can't be ignored. As a franchise, we need to be cutting-edge in this field. Better to have overlap than holes. Invest in tools that can give you the best information to make the best decisions going forward.

Here is how I would like to see the roster managed:1. Trade Jose is priority #1. I have said it in several threads and will continue to say it, the Raps need to trade Jose. Any development plan involving Jose not being traded is foolish because he is the only asset we have with a short shelf-life. He has value as an expiring contract, but that is only true for a few more months. You need to pull that trigger or lose that asset. Players combined with picks that fit a need and style should be focused on.

2. Trade Bargnani should be priority #2, but this could take longer than some of the other tasks as his value is very low right now. Let him play out the season if need be, but at some point in the next 1.5 years, Bargnani should no longer be on the Raps. If you looking to make a move immediately, then a bad contract + future pick is your best bet. I highly doubt the Charlotte rumours are true (Gordon + 1st rounder? I'd take that), but a move that may benefit both teams is Washington - Okafor. Okafor is vastly overpaid. Washington knows this, plus they have a similar style of player in Nene who is better and cheaper. Washington needs to add a different dimension to their team, Bargnani is as different from Okafor as possible and would add spacing and scoring to compliment their young scoring back-court. Getting a future first rounder (certainly there would be some limitations on the deal - likely top 5 protected, so it's realistically a couple of years down the road) gives the Raps a future asset to build with. Okafor would fit the defensive style and bring some leadership. Yes, he's never won anything in the NBA, but he was a 4 year star in college who won the NCAA championship (which is better than most players who don't even get to or finish their junior years). He would provide rugged interior defence (the role currently held by Aaron Gray) and his deal expires a full season ahead of Bargnani. If a similar deal can't be done, then Bargnani comes off the bench until the off-season when we try again. Hopefully he could demonstrate better basketball in the interim and raise his value slightly.

3. Monitor the un-stables There are a few teams that seem the most likely to blow things up right now and those situations need to be monitored very closely.
Phoenix fired their coach and had a near player revolt when the interim replacement was named. Their top 2 assistants left the team. Their don't seem to have a solid direction or talent base. They look like a team that will likely be exploded and rebuilt in the very near future. Guys to watch on Phoenix - Jared Dudley (perfect fit), Shannon Brown, Luis Scola. I'd even take on one of their basket-cases (Beasley) if it gave me a good pick.
Dallas looks poised to start over and Cuban is aggressive. While their roster isn't full of young talent, they do have some vets that could help. Guys to watch - Kaman, Marion, Beabois, Wright, and even Vince Carter (note - I was previously against this very much and said as much during the thread that ensued from his interview earlier this season).
Orlando is in rebuild mode, but hasn't completely purged their roster yet. Guys to watch - Affalo, Redick, Vucevic. They also have a nice trade exception which would be useful in facilitating a trade.
Milwaukee is running out of time to decide what to do with their roster. Do they re-sign Jennings or deal Ellis or keep both? They don’t seem to know any better than anyone else, so they could be poised to mvoe in a radical direction. Guys to watch - Ilyasova, Dalembert, Mbah a Moute, Dunleavy, Marquis Daniels. I doubt that whatever they do they would include Larry Sanders or Jon Henson. They also have a $2.5 million trade exception from the Stephen Jackson deal.
Washington has a lot of overlap and may be looking to move some pieces. Vesely seems to have fallen out of favour but was a lottery pick and is perhaps salvagable on the cheap. Guys to watch - Ariza, Vesely, Seraphin, Booker.
Atlanta made a lot of good moves last year and look to continue to be aggressive. They might be a difficult trade partner since they seem to have specific goals in mind but they have already suspended their most expensive and tantalizing player. They may decide to make a big move. Guys to watch - Josh Smith, Zaza, Morrow, Deshaun Stevenson, Ivan Johnson.
Charlotte has already been rumoured to be willing to make moves. Guys to watch - Gerald Henderson, Jeff Taylor. Gordon and Tyrus Thomas + a pick is worthy of consideration as well.
Sacramento…I mean Seattle…I mean….you know who. If they are being sold, regardless of whether it's to Seattle or not, teams being sold are always looking to shed salary. Guys to watch - Chuck Hayes, Jason Thompson, Aaron Brooks, Jimmer (possibly), D Cousins if they go all in "for sale mode".

I'd be calling Utah about either Millsap or Favors - offering Lowry (perfect fit for Utah). I'd be calling LA to see what they are doing. I'd keep an eye on Boston in case they finally do decide to move Rondo. I'd want to know what Chicago is doing with Kirk Hinrich once Rose comes back.

I'd want to know what players we have are most valued and to which teams.

4. Off-Season
It's harder to be specific the further out you get since you can't say for sure what deals have (if any) been made to this point.
If we retain our draft pick, I'm looking for players that still fit the mold of defense or athleticism ideally, but depending on roster moves we may need more shooting (likely) or another point guard (probably).
If we lose our draft pick, then great. Target the specific free agents/trades that fit the profile.

5. Stay activeThe teams that stay ahead of the curve are the teams that are the most active. OKC could have held on to Harden, then got into an ugly negotiation and then done a sign and trade. Instead they were pro-active, got a very good player (Kevin Martin), a lottery pick from us, and some prospects (Lamb could be very good). If they had waited, they likely wouldn't have netted so much and certainly it would have been much less amicable. We need to keep identifying players that fit our ideal, even if they are years away from open market. You never know who will become available next year, but you need to have a solid stable of targets at all times and their worth to our team, and their current team. We also need to know what our players are worth. Bargnani was worth a lot more in the off-season than he is now. You need to be on top of those situations to give you the most information whether to roll the dice or not.

Anyways, I think I've written enough for now. So Raptors Nation, do I qualify for the job?

Realistically, I think that as long as BC is at the helm, we need as many picks we can get. He has a proven track record of being able to draft well IMO (including PhX), and I think it is reasonable to think that a package with the two euros could get us some decent picks

Realistically, I think that as long as BC is at the helm, we need as many picks we can get. He has a proven track record of being able to draft well IMO (including PhX), and I think it is reasonable to think that a package with the two euros could get us some decent picks

I see this written a lot, but I'm not sure I agree. Other than Nash, Marion and Stoudamire, Colangelo hasn't really hit any homeruns with the draft. Although the jury is still out on DeRozan, Davis, Jonas and Ross.

Slightly related: Since being hired by Toronto, Colangelo has traded away 3 first round picks, and 9 second round picks. Some of these picks turned into Roy Hibbert, Jonas Jerebko, Kyle Singler, Norris Cole and Goran Dragic.

Slightly related: Since being hired by Toronto, Colangelo has traded away 3 first round picks, and 9 second round picks. Some of these picks turned into Roy Hibbert, Jonas Jerebko, Kyle Singler, Norris Cole and Goran Dragic.

That's not a terrible line-up, albeit a bit unbalanced. Cole was a fantastic pick by Miami for the slot they were drafting in. Dragic seems very solid yet unspectacular. I really like Singler as a good rotation player. He's smart and works hard. I haven't seen a lot of Jerebko, but he's definitely rotation worthy. Hibbert may never live up to his new deal, but he's still one of the better centers in the league.

I tend to agree that BC seems to be an above average drafter, but like Nilanka pointed out, a lot of picks have been sent out that should/could have been used better.

Just to comment on the Cleveland free agents you believe the Raptors should be monitoring.

Omri Casspi Nicknamed Assfingers on the Cleveland forums, has shot the 3 ball well this year. Unfortunately, that's the only thing he's done well and why his name is often listed as "DNP - Coach's Decision" next to his name in the box scores. I can't imagine why the Raptors would show any interest in him when they already have DeRozan, Ross, Fields, Anderson, and Kleiza.

Kelenna Azubuike Cleveland started the season with a horrible bench and yet this guy was not good enough to make the roster. I see no point in monitoring a 29 year old backup-type player in the hope he suddenly regain his athleticism three years after he tore a patella tendon.

Too many scouts means you have too many voices and each one is trying to tell the GM that he found a gem.

"Psst.. forget about this Wiggin kid, boy oh boy have I found a doozy of a kid. He's 8 feet tall and is averaging 35 rebounds per game. He's over in the little known country of Krakozhia, and get this -- he's a father of 8 and he's only 18 years old! He's the next Wilt Chamberlain!"

I know this is a very pessimistic view, but look at what we've got. Someone's got Colangelo's ear who shouldn't have a job. Look at the turnstile we've had over at SF since Vince Carter. Nothing but disasters -- Jamario Moon for god's sake! Alan Anderson! James Johnson! Sonny Weems! PJ Tucker!

I don't think too many scouts are a problem as long as it is managed properly. The head scout takes the information and ultimately passes it on to the GM. If you can't manage your people and their roles, then being a General Manager isn't probably the right job.

I also disagree that any those SFs were disasters. A disaster is a move that worsens your team, while tying up long term resources. All of those deals were cheap options. The real issue is that BC didn't acquire a legit starter, but all of these guys could be valuable roster additions.

Moon was super cheap and relatively affective. He shouldn't have been a starter, but nothing wrong with being on the team for a chance. Alan Anderson seems to be working out quite well. James Johnson seemed to be a good fit on a low salary. I wish we hadn't traded the pick for him, but he isn't a player I was opposed to. If he hadn't clashed with DC, then he'd seem like a good fit (athletic defender) and was worth the chance. Weems was another low cost flier who meshed well with Derozan off the court if not always on the court. He certainly wasn't a disaster. PJ Tucker has re-imerged as a solid role players in Phoenix, so while he didn't work out here, he isn't a dearth of talent either.

Just to comment on the Cleveland free agents you believe the Raptors should be monitoring.

Omri Casspi Nicknamed Assfingers on the Cleveland forums, has shot the 3 ball well this year. Unfortunately, that's the only thing he's done well and why his name is often listed as "DNP - Coach's Decision" next to his name in the box scores. I can't imagine why the Raptors would show any interest in him when they already have DeRozan, Ross, Fields, Anderson, and Kleiza.

Kelenna Azubuike Cleveland started the season with a horrible bench and yet this guy was not good enough to make the roster. I see no point in monitoring a 29 year old backup-type player in the hope he suddenly regain his athleticism three years after he tore a patella tendon.

Casspi was coveted before the season by multiple teams. Sometimes players dont work in certain situations. I wouldn't write a player off because of what happened at one stop along the way. He was a valuable contributor on a poor Kings team. If his team is down on him, all the more reason to keep an eye on him. He could be had for very cheap and wouldn't prevent the team from other moves.

Azubuike is perhaps done, perhaps not. I never said sign him, I said monitor the situation.

Also, you'll notice that nowhere in my post to I specify that the team keeps Derozan, Ross, Fields, Anderson or Kleiza. Of the bunch, I like Ross the most and recognize that Derozan and Fields might be difficult to move. I like Anderson, but he might be more valuable to us long-term as a trade chip to a contender looking for a cheap boost for the stretch run. Again, it would depend on what asset(s) he can bring back. Kleiza should be gone since he fits none of the criteria that I feel we should look for. So to ignore any other possible players because they play the same position as anyone else on this team is a bit short-sighted. This team needs players, regardless of the position. If you use those players as proof we don't need another wing, then I guess we don't need another big since we have Barg, Davis, Amir and Jonas. So I guess we're just adding a 4th PG to the team to push us over the top? Or is Lowry, Jose and Lucas enough for that? It would be nice to be set at any position, but the reality is, this team isn't talented enough at ANY position and every player that fits the plan should be considered.

Remember, a good player can be a burden if what we gave up is too much (look at Amir, we all love his game but hate his salary. Amir at half that and every loves it instead of throwing his name into the amnesty discussion). A weaker player can be a stronger move if it is for the right value.

Remember too that Chauncey Billups was a player that no team seemed to really want until he landed in the right situation in Detroit. You'll notice I didn't say "go sign players x,y,z" - I said monitor their situation. If we can get them for less than what we think they are worth, then we should make the move. Otherwise, we move on to the next player ont he list. I didn't provide a definite list of players we must sign, only the players that I feel fit the plan.

Moon was super cheap and relatively affective. He shouldn't have been a starter, but nothing wrong with being on the team for a chance. Alan Anderson seems to be working out quite well. James Johnson seemed to be a good fit on a low salary. I wish we hadn't traded the pick for him, but he isn't a player I was opposed to. If he hadn't clashed with DC, then he'd seem like a good fit (athletic defender) and was worth the chance. Weems was another low cost flier who meshed well with Derozan off the court if not always on the court. He certainly wasn't a disaster. PJ Tucker has re-imerged as a solid role players in Phoenix, so while he didn't work out here, he isn't a dearth of talent either.

Every single one of these guys are the reason that we haven't been in the playoffs for 5 years. Someone got into Colangelo's ear and he thought we would be good enough to go with these guys are our starter. You guys want to talk about the proverbial treadmill? This is it. "Low cost", Good fit", "relatively affective", "solid role player". These are expressions used by a used car salesman and you are eating it up. They are words that Raptors season ticket holders have been hearing for many years now and every year we are looking at a team going nowhere. Without a stud or two to back up these players, you have a whole lot of NOTHING.

The Raptors scouting team tries too hard to find bargains and sleepers. It's time to get a stud or you will see us in this same range of 35-40 wins (best case) for the foreseeable future. Maybe you're okay with that. I'm not.

Every single one of these guys are the reason that we haven't been in the playoffs for 5 years. Someone got into Colangelo's ear and he thought we would be good enough to go with these guys are our starter. You guys want to talk about the proverbial treadmill? This is it. "Low cost", Good fit", "relatively affective", "solid role player". These are expressions used by a used car salesman and you are eating it up. They are words that Raptors season ticket holders have been hearing for many years now and every year we are looking at a team going nowhere. Without a stud or two to back up these players, you have a whole lot of NOTHING.

The Raptors scouting team tries too hard to find bargains and sleepers. It's time to get a stud or you will see us in this same range of 35-40 wins (best case) for the foreseeable future. Maybe you're okay with that. I'm not.

I don't disagree, but you make it sound as if the only reason this team isn't full of all-star players at every position is because BC and/or ownership wasn't interested in acquiring them. I think they have drafted fairly well and signing/trades are not unilateral decisions that the Raps would make on their own. You might have a burning desire to dance, but without a dance partner, you're out of luck. If star players don't choose to sign with Toronto and/or teams play hardball with Toronto in trade talks, then what choice does the Raptors brass have? Again, I don't disagree, but you make it seem a little too simplistic.

Every single one of these guys are the reason that we haven't been in the playoffs for 5 years. Someone got into Colangelo's ear and he thought we would be good enough to go with these guys are our starter. You guys want to talk about the proverbial treadmill? This is it. "Low cost", Good fit", "relatively affective", "solid role player". These are expressions used by a used car salesman and you are eating it up. They are words that Raptors season ticket holders have been hearing for many years now and every year we are looking at a team going nowhere. Without a stud or two to back up these players, you have a whole lot of NOTHING.

The Raptors scouting team tries too hard to find bargains and sleepers. It's time to get a stud or you will see us in this same range of 35-40 wins (best case) for the foreseeable future. Maybe you're okay with that. I'm not.

Finding bargains and star players need not be mutually exclusive as your post implies. Saying that the Raps need a franchise player is pretty obvious. No one with a brain disputes this so I'm not sure what your point is.

Moving forward, if the Raps can land a franchise player, they will need to pay him max money and that means you have less cap room for other pieces. Therefore, not only is there nothing wrong with "low cost" "good fit" guys, they are in fact essential if you want to win anything. Without them, you can't put together a good enough roster.

Finding bargains and star players need not be mutually exclusive as your post implies. Saying that the Raps need a franchise player is pretty obvious. No one with a brain disputes this so I'm not sure what your point is.

Moving forward, if the Raps can land a franchise player, they will need to pay him max money and that means you have less cap room for other pieces. Therefore, not only is there nothing wrong with "low cost" "good fit" guys, they are in fact essential if you want to win anything. Without them, you can't put together a good enough roster.

I suppose it's the chicken-or-the-egg paradox. Do we wait until we have a franchise player, and then fill out the roster with low-cost complimentary pieces? Or do we find those pieces first, sell them as "core" pieces to the fan base, and take counter-productive steps towards finding the franchise player (i.e. not tanking)?

Side Note: How good would Damian Lillard look in a Raps uniform right now? We were basically 1 loss away from drafting him. We wouldn't have needed to chase Nash (therefore no Fields contract), and we wouldn't have traded for Lowry (therefore maintaining our pick next year). We'd have a franchise player in Lillard, cap space, and picks in tact.....sigh.

I suppose it's the chicken-or-the-egg paradox. Do we wait until we have a franchise player, and then fill out the roster with low-cost complimentary pieces? Or do we find those pieces first, sell them as "core" pieces to the fan base, and take counter-productive steps towards finding the franchise player (i.e. not tanking)?

Side Note: How good would Damian Lillard look in a Raps uniform right now? We were basically 1 loss away from drafting him. We wouldn't have needed to chase Nash (therefore no Fields contract), and we wouldn't have traded for Lowry (therefore maintaining our pick next year). We'd have a franchise player in Lillard, cap space, and picks in tact.....sigh.

fanbase wouldve probably found something wrong with me, then berate him and say he's not close to being a franchise player. sigh....

I suppose it's the chicken-or-the-egg paradox. Do we wait until we have a franchise player, and then fill out the roster with low-cost complimentary pieces? Or do we find those pieces first, sell them as "core" pieces to the fan base, and take counter-productive steps towards finding the franchise player (i.e. not tanking)?

Side Note: How good would Damian Lillard look in a Raps uniform right now? We were basically 1 loss away from drafting him. We wouldn't have needed to chase Nash (therefore no Fields contract), and we wouldn't have traded for Lowry (therefore maintaining our pick next year). We'd have a franchise player in Lillard, cap space, and picks in tact.....sigh.

We also could've kept our 1st round pick and not bothered with Lowry either. Lillard being mentored by Calderon was and still is an enjoyable thought. At least we had all those winning-culture building victories!

With regards to the bolded, I don't entirely blame BC/DC for that. I think it's less to do with selling support players (ie: Bosh, Bargnani, DeRozan) as super-star franchise players. I think it is more marketing driven, with the need to create a 'face of the franchise' to give the team a marketable identity that fans can relate to and rally behind. Plus, in this day and age, media and fans alike would elevate a single player as 'the guy', even if the franchise itself didn't. Sports especially is all about the star player, not the franchise. It's no different than the popularity of Justin Bieber on Twitter, or the Kardashians... average people latch onto famous/hyped individuals far more than they get behind a faceless, nameless team.

Lillard was the guy I was campaigning for back before the draft (anyone still lobbying for Austin Rivers? - didn't think so).

As for the chicken-egg scenario. How do you get a star player? #1 is through the draft, for which you need draft picks for. #2 is through a trade where you send multiple picks/prospects out for a star player (Melo deal, Deron deal, Harden deal).

Well for the Raps to be in the position for #2, they need to have multiple assets that over teams want. Right now, Alan Anderson is probably one of our best trade chips going into the deadline because he is playing well on both sides of the ball and is cheap. A team looking to add a player may not have the cap room for a Jose, but will very likely have the cap room for a min guy like Anderson. If you could trade Anderson for either a prospect or a draft pick right now, would you do it? I say yes, because it ultimately improves the team. If San Antonio offered their first round pick for Alan Anderson today, most people would say yes. SA would help their chances win this year, Raptors would add a valuable asset.

Either way, if you want to get a star player, you need to have assets, and this team doesn't have enough right now. So looking for players that elevate the competitiveness while giving us financial flexibility in the future seems the best approach. So if we identify those players that are undervalued, acquire them for less than market, if they can play well and are on cheap or short deals, then they become valuable assets. Rinse and repeat. That is how Houston got James Harden.